I'm a Believer
by Comickazi13
Summary: Katrina lives in an apartment complex in downtown Los Angeles. Her new next door neighbor is to-be Monkee, Peter Tork. When Peter introduces her onset, he takes a liking to her. Unfortunately, so does Mike. Rated T just in case.
1. Meeting Peter

_Not again!_ Katrina cursed her bad luck as she fumbled around in her purse. The pouring rain pattered on the roof of the apartment complex, daring any one of its occupants to step outside and get drenched.

"No, no, no, no, no," Katrina grimaced quietly as she literally turned her purse upside-down, spilling its contents on the floor. "Please be here." She dropped to her knees and ran her fingers over her belongings. She checked three…no four times, but there was no sign of her apartment key. "Crap!"

Katrina covered her mouth and looked around as the swearword left her lips. She didn't like saying bad words, but sometimes they just came out. They especially liked to slip out when she was upset or exhausted. She was both at this particular moment.

She grimaced again and leaned back against her door, sliding down to sit on the floor of the carpeted hallway. With a sigh, she put her head down on her knees and tried not to cry. This was the fifth time this month that she had lost her room key. Surely the landlord would have gotten tired of it by now. He would definitely kick her out if she asked for yet another copy.

"Who are you giving these keys out to?" he would ask irritably. "I don't want every Tom, Dick, and Harry running around in my apartments."

"Um, hey," said a voice above Katrina. "I think this probably belongs to you."

Katrina's face shot up and looked at the figure standing in front of her.

He was a bit on the short side, but not as much as to make Katrina imagine a midget. He wore a kindly smile on his face, which made dimples push up on each of his cheeks. His sandy-blonde hair was combed neatly by his ears in a bowl cut. He wore a crusted diner apron over his arm. In his hand, he held a key ring with a solitary key on it and in his brown eyes, he held a concerned look.

"Oh my God," Katrina shouted as she stood up in a flash. "Thank you so much! You have no idea how much trouble I would have been in without this key."

The man handed the key to her without hesitation and shrugged.

"It was nothing, really," he smiled. "But you should really be more careful with your room key. If I was the wrong kind of person, I could've taken everything you have." He reached out his hand and took Katrina's. "I'm Peter." He shook her hand. "I'm your new neighbor."

"I'm Katrina," Katrina grinned. "Nice to meet you. I'm glad you're not the wrong kind of person. Sure will make a change from the last neighbor I had. He snuck into my apartment at least four times and ate my fancy chocolate out of my fridge."

"You have fancy chocolate?" Peter asked teasingly, running his tongue over his lips. "Mm. Maybe I'll have to sneak in a couple times…just to make sure everything is ship shape." He punctuated this statement with a wink.

"You don't have to do that," Katrina giggled. "You can just knock, you know. I'm not a mean person."

"I can see that," Peter laughed, eyeing Katrina carefully. "Well, see you 'round, Katrina." He waved before unlocking his own door and heading through.

"Nice boy," Katrina muttered to herself before doing the same with her own doorway.


	2. The Audition Notice

It had been a couple of weeks since Peter moved in next door to Katrina. They'd been thick as thieves ever since the first day they met. Always hanging out together, Peter and Katrina learned way more about each other than probably anyone else would want to know. For instance, every single day after work, Katrina would pop over to the diner where Peter worked. When he got off his shift, they would walk home together and talk about what they were going to do next.

"Here," Peter said, handing Katrina a newspaper ad. "Tell me what you think of this."

Katrina's eyes wandered down the page. It looked like a standard wanted ad to her.

AUDITIONS

_Wanted:_

_Young men (approximately 18-21 years old) to play roles in a comedy TV series. _

_Required to have humor. Ability to play a musical instrument recommended. _

_Auditions will be held at 12:30 PM at ABC studios, Los Angeles, California._

"What about it?" Katrina asked, handing the audition notice back to Peter. Peter was quiet for a moment, simply studying the big, bolded letters.

"One of my friends says I should go try out for it," he shrugged. "I play a couple instruments, but that's just it. I'm a musician, not an actor. What do you think, Kat?"

Now it was Katrina's turn to be lost in thought. She looked Peter up and down and read the audition notice again. Finally, she took a deep breath.

"I think you should go for it," she smiled. "You're funny. And you could quit your job at that slime-hole called a diner." Peter chuckled.

"If anyone should be trying out for this, it's you, Kat," he grinned. "You're much funnier than me."

Katrina looked down at her chest and her curvy figure. She looked back up at Peter in mock-dolefulness.

"Alas," she sighed. "I don't think I'd be fooling anyone into thinking I'm a man." Peter laughed again. He snaked his arm around Katrina's shoulder and gave her a sideways hug.

"I agree. No matter how funny you might be, you'll never be a man," he said. "But, you know, if you think I should do this, I guess I'll do it. I've got a couple good friends backing me up."

"I think you have a good chance of getting it," Katrina chortled. "Whether 'it' is the boot or the role, I have no idea."

Peter lightly pushed Katrina so she stumbled a bit.

"Thanks for your confidence," he grimaced teasingly.

"You're welcome," Katrina smirked.


	3. Fancy Chocolate Celebration

As Katrina relaxed with a good book on her quiet Saturday afternoon, there came a feverish knocking at her front door. She jumped, calmed herself, then walked over to the door and opened it.

"Hey, Pete," she smiled. "What's up?"

Peter's face was flushed with excitement. He was shaking like a leaf. His big brown eyes bugged out in amazement.

"I got…the part," he said, barely in a whisper.

"Huh?" Katrina said airily. She stepped aside, allowing Peter to walk in. As soon as he was in her living room, Peter turned around and attacked Katrina with the biggest hug known to mankind.

"I GOT THE PART!" he yelled. Peter released Katrina from his hug and started dancing around like a raving lunatic. "No more working at that diner! I get to play my music for a living! This is what I've been waiting for my whole life!"

"Peter!" Katrina exclaimed, trying to catch her breath. "Peter! Calm down! I can't understand a word of what you're saying!"

"I can't calm down because I GOT THE PART, KAT!"

"Oh my God! That's AMAZING!"

"I KNOW!"

"When's your first rehearsal?"

"Tomorrow at nine," Peter said breathlessly. "I can't wait."

"Do you know who you're working with?" Katrina asked. She sat Peter down on the couch and slipped next to him, giving him her full attention.

"Not yet," Peter shrugged. "But I'll bet they'll be great guys."

"Well," Katrina grinned, "I'd say this calls for some chocolate. I'll be right back."

With this, she rushed to her kitchen. Whipping out a couple plates, she opened her fridge and pulled out her enormous box of bon-bons. Using her fingers to pick the choicest chocolates from the box, Katrina dished out the delicious treats and rushed a plate of them back to Peter. "Eat up," she smiled. "Consider this your Hero Sandwich."

Peter laughed before plucking a bon-bon from the plate and sticking it in his mouth. "Mm," he moaned, closing his eyes. "These are so good they should be a sin. I couldn't have asked for a better reward for being cast."

"Well, you are going to be a famous star," Katrina pointed out, "with lots of money just sitting around for you to spend. I bet it won't be long before you move out of this dump."

There was a long silence. Neither one of the friends wanted to think about being apart. Peter loved having Katrina to talk to, not to mention her fancy chocolates to snack on every once-in-a-while. Katrina loved having Peter around to find her keys when they went missing. Besides that, she liked walking around and listening to his ideas and conversation.

"I don't think any pile of cash could get me to move away from you, Kat," Peter shrugged. "You're my best friend."

"Ditto, Pete," Katrina sighed. "Ditto."

Peter dropped another chocolate into his mouth and chewed thoughtfully. "Know something?" he asked suddenly.

"I know a few things," Katrina replied. "But probably not what you're going to tell me."

"I think I'm gonna take you to the studio with me when I get comfy," Peter announced. "When I know my fellow actors are groovy and everything, I'll introduce you. Okay?"

"Sounds like a plan," Katrina giggled.


	4. Patching up the Friendship

For about a month, Katrina didn't get to see much of Peter. He was always darting in and out of the apartment to rehearse lines, shoot episodes, or just hang out with the guys. It was beginning to feel like he was ignoring Katrina. Or at least, that's how she saw it.

"Hey, Pete," Katrina smiled as she saw her friend slinking in his door. She collected her paper and stood in the hall, waiting for Peter to respond.

"Hey, Kat," he shrugged before disappearing into his apartment.

"That man…" Katrina trailed off, not wanting to curse. She stalked back into her apartment indignantly and slammed the door. She didn't care who heard that.

Settling into her chair, Katrina ripped open the paper and studied the contents. To her surprise, she found a small article about the TV series Peter was cast in: The Monkees. Scanning the article, she found out that Peter had been extremely busy shooting the pilot episode, which was a flop. Now, they were working on the rewritten version of the pilot, hoping to get better ratings.

Folding the paper neatly in her lap, Katrina studied the facts. Peter was working extremely hard on the TV show. The first pilot episode was not successful. He probably didn't have time to hang out with his old friends while keeping in time with his work schedule. Most likely, the fact that Katrina was mad with him wasn't helping him get over his stress.

Katrina walked out of her apartment and quietly knocked on Peter's door. She heard some shuffling inside and a very drowsy Peter appeared. At the sight of his friend, he rubbed his eyes and ran his hands through his messy hair.

"Hey," he said simply.

"Hey," Katrina returned. "Can I come in?"

Peter stepped aside and allowed Katrina to enter his apartment. He watched her as she situated herself on his couch.

"What's up?" he asked.

Katrina tried to figure out exactly how she wanted to say what she wanted to say. She twisted a lock of her blonde hair around her pointer finger and bit her lip. Her blue eyes wandered up to the ceiling.

"I'm sorry for being so mean these last couple of days," she sighed. "I didn't realize how much stress you were under."

Peter was quiet for a minute. He walked over to Katrina and gave her a hug.

"Don't worry about it," he said. "It's not your fault. I've been really busy and I've wanted to hang out for a while. But, I just don't have the time any more."

There was another long, tedious silence. Katrina missed how they used to be able to fill any dead space with witty conversation.

"You remember that time I told you I wanted you to come down to the studio and meet the guys?" Peter asked suddenly. Katrina nodded. "Well, since we both want to hang out, but I'm so busy, why don't I take you to rehearsal with me tomorrow morning? You can meet the guys, we can hang out at lunch break, and you won't be alone all day."

"Sounds good," Katrina smiled. Peter smiled back. But his smile was tired and he ended up yawning. "I'll see you tomorrow," Katrina laughed. "When should I be ready to go?"

"Five thirty," Peter replied. Katrina grimaced, but nodded.

"Okay. See you then." She leaned over and gave Peter a supportive kiss on the cheek before going back to her own apartment.


	5. Meeting Micky

The next morning, Katrina awoke to the harsh chord played by her alarm clock. She slammed her hand down on the "sleep" button and looked at the time. When she caught sight of the position of the clock hands, she groaned and hid her head under her pillow. No way was she getting up this early!

Katrina was almost back to sleep when there was a loud knock at her door. She suddenly remembered why she was supposed to get up at five in the morning and leapt out of bed. Similar to a whirlwind, she flew through her house, showering, getting dressed, brushing teeth, combing hair, applying makeup, and grabbing a quick slice of dry toast before yanking the door open.

"Sorry I kept you waiting, Pete," Katrina blushed as she grabbed her coat.

"No problem," Peter shrugged. "You're only two minutes late."

. . . .

As Peter led her into the studio, Katrina marveled at all the equipment she was sure she'd never see in her entire life. It looked exactly like in the movies. She laughed at her thought of one day striding through a set like she owned the place, a red feather boa stung about her neck and sunglasses perched on her pointed nose.

"Peter, you're late!" shouted a man from a foldable chair. For a second, Katrina thought he was the director, but he didn't look much like a director.

He had slightly wavy hair that was cut in a very conservative way. His face had a rather comical arrangement with his button nose and chin that jutted out just a tad too far. His eyes were what Katrina sometimes called "laughing eyes." They were given that title for two reasons: because they were squinted as if the person was laughing and because they naturally shined with good humor.

"Sorry, Micky," Peter teased.

The man, Micky, stood up and grinned at Peter. His eyes wandered over to Katrina and looked her up and down. He raised his eyebrows and elbowed Peter in the ribs.

"Girlfriend?" Micky asked, chuckling mischievously.

"No," Peter muttered, his face taking on a slightly pinkish color. "This is my neighbor, Katrina Anderson. She's my best friend. Actually, she encouraged me to go to the auditions."

Micky swept over to Katrina and gave her a stout handshake. Despite the fact that he looked serious the entire time, there was something joking in his face.

"Well, glad to have such a pretty girl with such an acute eye for talent onset with us today," Micky said in complete honesty. Then, with a Groucho Marx-esque grin, he added, "And if you aren't Pete's girl, let's just say you'll have some trouble faring with the rest of us…I'm only kidding. Geez. Don't look so panicked." He winked before grabbing Peter's arm and hauling him off to the set.


	6. Meeting Davy

"C'mon, Kat," Peter called over his shoulder as Micky dragged him away.

Katrina hesitated a moment before following. She wasn't very used to this environment quite yet and she didn't want to get lost. As she followed the two guys, she thought to herself.

Micky seemed nice enough. If the other two guys were like him, Katrina would have no problem with them except for beating them off with a stick when they got too wolfish. She chuckled at the thought. She was kidding, of course. She didn't think that Micky would do anything like that.

"Davy, we have to be onset in five minutes," Micky reminded a young man sitting in another foldable chair.

The man stood up…or was he kneeling? He was too short to tell for sure. His dark brown hair almost reached his shoulders, but not quite. His bangs were combed over to one side and the majority of his hair was pushed behind his ears. He had a cute face. When using the word "cute," however, it means that he had a face that looked like a twelve-year-old's.

"I'm coming," he mock-complained in a British accent. He turned around and spotted Katrina. Looking back over and Micky and Peter he gestured to her with his thumb asking, "Who's the girl?"

"Pete's friend," Micky replied simply.

"Oh," the man smiled. "I'm Davy Jones." He extended his hand for Katrina to shake, which she did.

"Nice to meet you," Katrina said.

"Likewise," Davy winked. "But, I shouldn't hang around for long. We gotta find Mike so we can get shooting for the new pilot." He took notice of the fact that Katrina wasn't really walking with Micky and Peter. "That's no way to treat a lady, guys," he said scornfully. "You're supposed to escort her, not leave her in the dust."

"Sorry," Micky fake-sobbed. "It'll never happen again, Officer Jones." The three guys shared a laugh before heading off again. This time, Davy stayed behind with Katrina and made sure she was comfortable the whole walk.

"So, how'd you meet Peter?" he asked.

"He's my neighbor," Katrina smiled. "And he's my best friend."

"Two in one?" Davy joked. "Pretty good." They continued walking.

"Where in the world is Mike?!" Micky exclaimed from in front of them. "We have to be onset in a few minutes!"

"Why don't you try the wardrobe room?" Davy called back. "They could be still having trouble getting him to chuck the hat."

Micky agreed with this idea and the four of them headed off in a different direction.


End file.
